Changed
by GoneDrake
Summary: A Gone story. Gretchen must pretend to be in love with Drake so that he won't kill her. But what happens when she really does fall in love with him? Will Gretchen change for the better or for the worse?
1. Part 1

**GPOV**

"Hey, Gretchen, what do you think is going on in there?"

One of my best friends, Julie, nudged my shoulder. She was pointing at the church, her eyes wide with confusion.

I narrowed my eyes as I heard the cries and the shouts coming from the building.

"Probably just an argument." I shrugged. "Nothing to get worried about."

I continued playing with my hair, looking at all of the kids that were passing by. To tell the truth, I was a little bit worried, but not from the sounds of chaos errupting from the church. It had already been a few days since everyone fifteen years or older had disappeared. There had been no sign that they were coming back anytime soon. In fact, it seemed like no one in the world notcied what had happened to us. People disappearing, televisions and the internet failing to work, an enormous dome that generates electricity suddenly surrounding parts of Perdido Beach... It was incredible.

I watched as Caine and the other Coates leaders exited from the church, smirks plastered on their faces. They walked gracefully towards the town hall, just across the street from the plaza.

I didn't trust them.

Not just because the kids from Perdido Beach and the kids from Coates Academy had rarely ever gotten along, but because Caine acted to confident. The way their cars had all lined up, the way he had spoken, the whole thing seemed like a charade. A big, well planned, well thought out charade.

I studied them closely, skeptical of whatever act they were trying to fool us with. Caine was ahead of the other two, waving at the kids who were looking at him in awe. I almost snickered to myself, realizing how much this scene matched up to a king daintily parading to his castle, acknoledging his loyal subjects that looked up to him and all of his greatness. But the only great thing about Caine was his ego.

Behind Caine was a boy and a girl. The boy had sandy colored hair, and a malicious grin on his face. The girl had dark hair and dark eyes, looking extremely sure of herself. Something told me that the two of them weren't the best of friends, for every now and then, a dark glare would be exchanged between the two of them.

I looked up at the boy's eyes, wanting to see whether they were as mean as his smile, and for a brief instant, our eyes locked. He glanced in my direction and flashed me that same, sparkling white, malicious grin. A shiver of fear went through me, and I shuddered. I quickly looked away, spun around, and smacked in to some young boy.

"Ow..." The boy rubbed his head.

"Sorry!" I felt my cheeks turning red with embarrassment. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." The boy turned his back to me and sauntered off.

"Huh." I shrugged and turned my attention to Julie who was staring intently at the entrance of the church. "Are they still in there?"

Julie nodded. "Astrid and Little Pete left before Caine and the others, but other then that, everyone else is still inside."

"Oh." I looked at the church for a moment before turning back to Julie. "Do you know which way Astrid and Little Pete went?"

Julie pointed her finger in the direction behind me.

"Thanks." I smiled. "I'll be right back."

I spotted Astrid almost right away, in the middle of a conversation with one of the Coates kids. He had blond hair and glasses, and looked around ten or eleven years old. The dark haired girl that had been behind Caine was now talking to the two of them, quite smug. I managed to overhear the girl telling the boy to come with her, and then they both headed off towards the town hall.

"Hey, Astrid!" I called, waving my hands in the air. "Can I talk to you?"

Astrid looked angry, her eyebrows pulled together. "What?" She snapped, her eyes narrowed.

"Sorry." I muttered, looking at the ground. I considered coming back to talk to her another time, when she was in a better mood.

"It's okay, Gretchen." Astrid's facial expression softened. "It's not your fault. I'm just a little bit annoyed, that's all."

"Oh." There was an awkward pause. "So, um, do you mind if I talked to you about something?"

"No, go ahead." Astrid gave me a warm smile, but her features still had a trace of bitterness in them.

"Do you have any idea what's happening in the church?" I asked. I realized that my voice had a whiney tone to it, but I didn't care.

Astrid bit her lip, obviously debating whether to tell me the truth or not. I stared at her with pleading eyes.

"Come on, Astrid." I pushed. "I won't tell anyone. Please tell me."

"Caine has the power." Astrid said plainly, her voice unsure.

"The power?" I asked, though I already knew what she meant. I just wanted to hear it from someone else.

"It's unreal." Astrid shook her head, her eyes closed for a moment. "I don't know why it's happening, or how, but it just is."

--

It had been a few days since Caine had taken over. He spent a lot of his time at the town hall, planning ways to deal with situations and giving out orders. The sandy haired boy, Drake, had been appointed the police chief. And as far as I'd seen, that had been a big mistake. No one wanted to mess with him or get on his bad side. Drake was dangerous.

"Your list, please." Howard extended his hand, and I placed the piece of paper in his hand. Howard's job was to play police officer and sit outside of the grocery store, making sure no one went inside without his permission. He nodded, and handed me my list back.

"You're free to enter, Gretchen. But remember, don't take anything that can be stored for later. caine wants to save all of the packaged food."

"Okay." I grabbed one of the grocery baskets from the doorway and entered.

The grocery store hadn't been cleaned after the vandalism, so there was still broken glass, spilled drinks, and dropped food all over the floor. I stepped around a puddle of milk and looked at the frozen goods section. The power was still on. Good. I had just picked up one of the packaged chickens when I heard Sam's voice behind me.

--

There's a whole section here that I still need to type up.

--

Drake leaned against the classroom wall, his face emotionless. He looked bored, like he would rather be somewhere else right now.

Well, so would I.

Astrid and Little Pete were sitting next to me. I nervously drummed my fingers on one of the grade four math textbooks, and pursed my lips.

I didn't know why we were being held here, but it definitely wasn't for a party. Something was going on between Sam and Caine, i could feel it. Sam had been seperated from Astrid and Little Pete, taken by Orc and his friends. And we had been brought to the school, by Drake and Diana.

"Say it!" I heard Drake insist, his voice loud and annoyed. "Say it!"

I turned my head just in time to see Drake's hand make contact with Astrid's face. I winced to myself, even though I wasn't the one who was getting slapped.

"No." Astrid shook her head. She was trying to be tough, but she was going to get hurt if she continued to defy Drake.

The next slap nearly sent Astrid flying backwards.

"Are you okay, Astrid?" I had gotten up, not exactly sure what to do. They both ignored me.

Drake yanked Astrid's blond hair so that her head was right next to Little Pete's. "One more time!" Drake laughed darkly. "Say it nice and loud!"

What was it she was supposed to say?

Then, in the blink of an eye, Astrid and Little Pete disappeared.

Vanished.

I blinked a few times, and looked at Drake with wide eyes. He seemed to be just as stunned as I was. "Where did they go?" Drake yelled, his anger turning into fury. "Where did they go?"

I didn't say anything. I had seen Drake do crazy things when he wasn't angry, so I didn't even want to guess what he'd do when he was angry. "They're not old enough to poof like that!" Drake was now pacing, his eyes still fixated on the place where Astrid and Little Pete had vanished. Drake suddenly looked at me, and grabbed my wrist, violently yanking me towards him.

"We're going to see Caine." Drake seethed. "He might know what just happened."

--

"How?" Caine narrowed his eyes at Drake, and then at me. "Were you watching them?"

"Of course!" Drake rolled his eyes, obviously wondering how Caine could think so pourly of him. "They just disappeared."

"Whatever the case is, they've got to be somewhere. They couldn't have poofed." Caine declared.

Diana shot Caine a curious glance. "What if Little Pete is like Taylor? She could teleport across a room, but was already three bars. Being able to teleport through a room could be four bars, or even higher."

Caine's eyebrows pulled together. "Drake, find them. And then kill them."

My mouth dropped open. How could a fourteen year old plan on killing someone?

Drake smiled deviously. "What do I do with her?" Drake jerked his head sideways in my direction.

"Get rid of her." Caine dismissed Drake with the wave of his hand. "I have more important things to do then deal with you mishaps, Drake."

Ignoring Caine's comment, Drake grinned malisciously and pushed me through the entrance of the gymnasium.

--

Think, Gretchen, think. I was frantically trying to come up with ideas, ones which regarded me escaping and getting away from my captor. Making a break for it wouldn't work. Drake was holding my hands behind my back. Besides, I wouldn't be able to get that far. Even though I was a fast runner, there was a slim chance that I'd be able to dodge Drake's attacks.

Asking him to let me go wasn't a very good idea either. Caine had given him orders, and there was no reason why Drake would defy them. Unless he wanted to. But why wouldn't he want to kill me? I debated the possibilities in my head.

Pity? I think not.

A change in his attitude? I seriously doubted that.

A rebellion against Caine? Caine could kill Drake, and Drake knew that.

What else was there?

A thought suddenly hit me, and my eyes grew round. The chances were slim, but this idea was all that I had left. There was nothing to lose.

Except for my life.

--

"A shame to get rid of such a pretty face." Drake shook his head, frowning. But then he smiled. "Oh, well."

I concentrated on his face, on one spot in particular. I wasn't a very good actor, but I was pretty sure that I could pull this off. Ignoring him, I continued to stare.

"So, we'll get this over with quickly, okay?" Drake chuckled. "And then I can go get rid of Astrid and her pesky brother."

I nodded, and kept my face emotionless.

"What are you looking at?" Drake demanded, eyeing me suspiciously.

"Nothing." I answered blankly.

Drake moved his head to one side, and my eyes followed his movement.

"What are you looking at?" Drake repeated, this time less annoyed, and more amused. I had no idea what his devious mind was thinking, but I had to get on with it before he discovered what I was up to.

"I'm just daydreaming." I gave a loud, lingering sigh. "So, how do you plan on killing me?"

Drake was confused for a moment, but then seemed to shake it off. "I don't have a gun with me right now." Drake answered, regret in his voice. "So I guess I'll have to get rid of you another way."

"Pity." I told him, mock sadness in my tone. "So what are you going to do then?"

"A nice, hard whack in the head with a abseball bat ought to do it." Drake grinned, and I shuddered against my will.

"Lovely." I muttered sarcastically. "Just lovely."

Drake led me behind the school, into the deserted playground. The swings were blowing in the wind, and the whole schoolyard was just like a scene out of a horror movie. The murderer leads the girl into the ominous fields, planning how he's going to kill her...

Drake cornered me up against the brick wall right next to the basketball nets.

"Any last words?" Drake laughed, taking this bad guy thing way to far. "Any last regrets?"

It was now or never.

"Yes." I nodded. Drake and I were face to face now, our noses barely inches apart. The metal baseball bat was gripped tightly in Drake's hands. "I regret that I... never got to do this."

I leaned forward and pressed my lips firmly against his.

--

The metal baseball bat clanked on the hard pavement, freeing Drake's hands. He put his hands on my face and kissed me back. I felt a mix of emotions, but none of those included passion. I was scared, scared out of my mind. I tried to shake that feeling out of my head, knowing that fear resulted in being tense. And being tense could ruin my charade. I entwined my hands in his sandy colored hair and pulled him closer.

Then, he slowly pulled away, and wrapped his arms around my waist so that we were still facing each other.

"Whoa." Drake was speechless. He looked my right in the face and grinned a sheepish grin. "That was... different. In a good way." I nodded and kissed the corner of his mouth.

"It was a sudden impulse." I dropped my eyes to the ground, pretending to be embarrassed. "I just wanted you, Drake."

Drake's expression was suddenly serious, and I watched as his eyes darted to the fallen baseball bat and then back to me. He sighed.

"So I guess you have to kill me now, huh?" I backed up against the brick wall for him. "But at least now," I sighed happily. "I don't have that regret anymore."

Drake came closer to me, picking up the baseball bat on his way. His eyes showed that he was deep in thought, which was a good thing. I didn't expect my plan tp work flawlessly, but I did expect it to work. Drake narrowed his eyes, his lips pressed together making a thin line. He seemed to be studying me.

"You know what?" Drake stepped closer to me, held the baseball bat up high, and then chucked it backwards over his head. Drake winked at me and I smiled. "Some orders are meant to be defied."

Drake leaned forward and kissed me.

--

"Where did all these guns come from?" I gaped at the multiple weapons placed on the kitchen table. We were in a deserted apartment, or the sheriff's quarters, as Caine put it. Drake was toiling around withe guns, holding them up, almost in some sort of personal daydream. It really creeped me out.

"The man who used to live here had quite the collection." Drake didn't take his eyes off on the gun he held in his hand. I frowned, and wondered if he even knew how to properly handle them.

"My dad taught me." Drake played with the safety lock, answering my unspoken question. "He was the sheriff." I nodded, and stepped closer to Drake. He seemed to know what he was doing, but one could never be to sure.

"This one will be for you." Drake startled me by placing a shiny metal pistol in my hand. It was cold, but pretty light. "I'll take these two." Drake strapped a large, hunting rifle to his back and picked up another shiny metal pistol off of the kitchen table, quite similar to the one that he had just given to me.

"What do you mean?" I asked nervously, not exactly sure what to do with this deadly weapon that had just been placed in my hands. "I'm not sure that I can, you know, shoot someone."

"It's okay." Drake grinned enthusiastically and placed a hand on my shoulder. "I'll teach you."

I decided not to argue with Drake, especially in this particular room. I listened attentively as Drake told me all of the basics, like how to hold the gun, how to shoot it, how to aim.

"Targets are one thing, but people are another." Drake was now leading me towards the front door, his arm around my waist. "Like my dad once said, you shoot to kill." Drake grinned deviously at the word "Kill". I knew that I wouldn't shoot someone with a gun, but Drake seemed to think that I would.

We made our way to Astrid's house in silence. Drake was incredibly eager, and I was incredibly frightened. But as we walked to Astrid's house, guns in hand, I did some thinking.

Drake liked me, and as frightening as that was, it could be used to my advantage. If I could keep my little charde up long enough, I might be able to prevent horrible things from happening to the others. If Drake really liked me, and from the looks of it, he did, then I could possibly get information from him about Caine that Sam wanted.

I smiled to myself.

"See, I told you this was exciting." Drake gave me a quick kiss on the lips.

"So what do I do?" I asked nervously, staring at the three guns amongst the two of us. "What's the plan?"

"I'll search the house. You can either come with me," Drake took my hands in his. "Or you can be on the lookout outside of the house, in case they try to escape. It's your choice."

I bit my lip. I would have much prefferred to stay outside, but then again, with Orc and his thugs patrolling the streets... And besides, I knew what Drake would have prefferred, and I had to be convincing.

"I guess I'll come with you." I managed to give him a confident smile. I linked my arm with his and led the way as we quietly entered the house. The only sounds were our footsteps. We crept through the house, peering into room after room. It felt like we were playing some sort of life or death hide and seek. After a while, I was convinced that Astrid and Little Pete had escaped, which put me in a better mood then I was when I had first entered. But our discovery seemed to have the oppsoite effect on Drake. His lips were pursed, and his hands were clenched. Getting outsmarted was obviously aggravating him. We had both searched almost every place possible for them to hide, and I was glad that we hadn't found them. But of course, there was no way that I'd tell Drake that.

"They're not here." Drake whispered, annoyed. "Let's get out of here."

I nodded, and Drake pulled me out onto Astrid's front porch. He turned his back to the house, hesitated, and then turned around again.

"I'll be back in a moment." Drake called, and then ran back into the house. I shrugged, puzzled by what he was thinking. Drake came out a few minutes later, a proud smile on his face.

"What did you do?" I asked suspiciously, eyeing him carefully.

Drake pointed to the roof of Astrid's house, and my mouth dropped open.

There was smoke coming out of the chimney.

Drake had set Astrid's house on fire. I suddenly felt dizzy with fear, and stumbled forward, nearly tripping over my own feet. Gripping one of the wooden beams near the front porch, I turned to Drake. "Why?" Was all that I could manage.

Drake looked confused, like he had expected me to be happy as well. "So that they won't be able to come back." Drake's voice was unsure. "Hey, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." I nodded, but held onto his outstretched hand anyways. "I'm just a little bit dizzy."

"Okay." Drake still looked slightly worried. "Hey, you aren't afraid of heights, are you?"

"Um, no..." I studied his facial expression. "Why do you ask?

"Because we're about to do some climbing." Drake grinned, once again returning back to his destructive self. "Follow me."

--

"I don't see them." I informed Drake, who was standing right next to me, his gun raised.

"Me neither." Drake grumbled, his eyes locked on the town below us. "I don't understand how they could have escaped!"

"Where do you think they would go?" I asked curiously.

"Probably somewhere where Sam would know where to find them." Drake replied tonelessly. "But Sam is being held in the school."

"Why? I demanded. "What does Caine want with him?"

"How should I know?" Drake spat through his teeth. "Diana is his personal adviser, not me. I just do all his dirty work for him." I waited for Drake to become calm, but he continued to seethe. "And Caine has everyone running around for him, while he spends all his time giving orders. All because of the power!" There was that word again.

"Do you have, you know, the power?" I was simply curious.

"No." Drake grumbled. "Do you?"

"No." I replied truthfully. I was glad that I didn't have the power. It caused fights and jealousy amongst everyone, and it determined who was going to be the leader of The Fayz. Personally, I thought we would all be beter off without it.

"Sam has it, you know." Drake frowned, obviously in envy of him. "He might even be as powerful as Caine."

"Huh." I didn't really know what else to say.

"Hey, will you look at that!" Drake exclaimed, looking at the ocean. "Do you see the speedboat?"

"Sam escaped!" I whispered, excited. "Didn't you say he was being held at the school?"

"He was." Drake narrowed his eyes at the speedboat. "But it seems like there was a traitor. I must have a little talk with Quinn the next time that I see him."

"They're heading towards the power plant." I informed Drake.

"It looks like that." Drake chuckled menacingly. "But check it out." Drake pointed to the front of the boat. "They're turning around, and heading South."

"Why would they want to go South?" I asked, confused. "The only things in that direction before the barrier are Perdido Beach and... The Clifftop Resort."

"Exactly." Drake kissed the top of my head, letting his lips linger in my hair for a moment. He grabbed my hand and pulled me down the stairs of the church.

--

"We're here." Drake parked the car at the front of the resort and we both stepped out onto the pavement. The sun was shining, and the ocean below the cliffs was calm and peaceful. "I have a feeling that they'll be in one of the hotel rooms, waiting for Sam to come and get them. Drake grinned, his sandy colored hair gently blowing in the wind. "Come on."

I followed Drake into the main lobby of the resort, which was clean and polished. It was a nearly bare room, except for the wooden front desk against the far wall.

"What room do you think they're in? Drake asked me, his brow furrowed. "We need to get to them before Sam does."

"Hey, they need a passkey, right?" I smiled at my discovery. Drake nodded, unsure of where I was going with this. "Then to get into a room, they would have had to make one. And to make one, you need to use the computer."

"Which would have a record of the passkeys made!" Drake finished for me, excited. "Good thinking."

I caught myself beaming.

We both walked over to the front desk. Drake turned to the computer. "Good. It's still on." He took the mouse in his hand and browsed the multiple documnets that were already open. "Room two hundred and eighteen, floor two." Drake jumped up and ran to the elevator. I followed, biting my lip. "Remember." Drake whispered, kissing my cheek. "You shoot to kill."

It was then that I remembered the gun in my hand, and I gripped it tightly. Drake pressed the up button on the elevator, walked inside, and then pressed the floor two button. "Aren't they in for a surprise." Drake whispered, and I heard him click the safety off of his two guns. I gripped my gun tighter.

The elevator door clicked open, and we both stepped out to see Astrid staring at us, her eyes wide with fear. My eyes grew round as well as I watched Drake lift up his pistol and point it at Astrid. His finger pressed down on the trigger.

Three, two, one. Drake shot once, missing Astrid's head by an inch.

I watched as she pushed Little Pete into the hotel room and slammed the door shut, frantically locking all of the locks. We both raced towards the closed door. "Stand back." Drake warned me, sticking his arm out. He aimed his gun at the door handle and in a few shots had blasted it right off the door.

"There's another lock." I informed him. He nodded and blasted that one off the door as well. All that was left was a little metal chain. Drake destroyed it in a few seconds, kicked the door open, and raced into the room.

"Crap." Drake swore. "They're gone."

"They disappeared?" I asked him quietly, coming up behind him.

"I think." Drake walked over to the blacony and momentarily looked over it. "It's to high up. I doubt they would have jumped."

"You're right." I looked over the blacony as well. "So, what now?" Drake sighed, and then suddenly froze in his tracks. There was a quiet moaning sound coming from below us. Drake grinned viciously, and looked over the balcony. He laughed darkly and raised his gun.

"They're there?" I asked nervously. Drake gave me a thumbs up sign. He leaned farther over the railing, and pointed his gun at Astrid and Little Pete.

In a moment their lives could be over.

I squeezed my eyes shut, and waited for the shot of the gun. But it didn't happen.

There was a cracking noise and my eyes flew open just in time to see Drake fly over the edge of the railing.

I screamed.

Sam was standing next to me, a lamp in his hand. He turned to me, and his mouth dropped open. "Gretchen?" Sam stared at me. "What are you doing here? With Drake?"

I ignored his question and nearly threw myself over the railing. Drake was crumpled into an unconscious heap two stories down, his guns still in hand. Feeling an undescribable need to see if Drake was okay, I sprang backwards and ran to the doorway.

Sam was still gaping at me from the balcony. I met his eyes for a moment, ashamed. Sam's eyes were worried, concerned, and stayed locked on mine for a moment. Then his eyes flew down to the gun gripped tightly in my hand. "Gretchen, what's that?" Sam asked slowly, moving a step backwards. The look of worry and concern was now gone, replaced with pure fear and terror. I realized that he was scared of me, even though he had no reason to be. Sam had the power, and I didn't.

"I," I stumbled over my own words. "I have to see if Drake is okay." I gave Sam a weak smile. "Goodbye, Sam." I turned my back to him and left the hotel room. I could feel him still gaping at me. Getting into the elevator, I tapped my foot impatiently. As soon as the doors opened, I sprinted into the front lobby, and ran to Drake, who was lying motionlessly on the grass.

I knelt down next to him, putting my gun down. He didn't look injured, just knocked out. Drake was crumpled, lying on his side. His eyes were shut.

"Drake?" I whispered, and gently ran my fingers through his hair. I slowly ran my hand over his cheek, delicately trailing it over his jawbone. His face was soft and rosy.

There was the sound of a motor, and I quickly turned my head around, seeing only the deserted highway. I knew Sam and the others were escaping, but it would be foolish to go after them. Without Drake, I was nearly defenseless, even with the gun.

"Drake? I tried again, and pressed my lips against his forehead. Drake gave a quiet moaning sound, and his eyes slowly flickered open.

"Gretchen?" Drake gave me a small smile, and tried to get into the sitting position. He struggled, so I held my hand out, telling him to stay lying down. Drake shook his head, and after a few seconds, managed to get up triumphantly.

"How are you feeling?" I murmured, looking him straight in the face. Drake's eyes were worn out, tired.

"Good." Drake mumbled. He crossed his legs and pulled me into his lap, wrapping his arms around my waist. Drake was tense, his arms just a little bit to tight around me and his back upright instead of slouched. "So," Drake muttered bitterly. "Did you see which direction Sam went in?" His hands were now clenched into fists. "If I catch him, he'll be sorry he ever messed with me."

"No." I shook my head regretfully. "But I have a feeling Sam will be heading North, as far as he can go."

"You're probably right." Drake nodded and gave a slight yawn. "We'd better report back to Caine."

As soon as Drake said his name, I felt rigid with fear all over again. I grew tense as well, worrying what Caine might do if he found out that Drake had defied his orders. Drake obviously felt my tension, for he tightened his grip around my waist and squeezed my arm.

"Don't worry, Caine won't mind." Drake reassured me. "When I tell him that you're with me, he won't be able to say no. If we can't stay, then we'll go. It's as simple as that."

"Yeah." I laughed bitterly. "Except for the fact that Caine is leader for only one reason. he makes people do what he wants with force."

Drake frowned, his eyes narrowing. As he stood up, he grabbed my hand. It took me a moment to realize that Drake didn't know what to say. I was right. "Let's go." Drake suggested firmly. "The sooner we talk to Caine, the sooner we can track down Sam and his friends." He grinned in satisfaction, torturous thoughts passing through his devious mind. I was glad that I wasn't Sam right now. He seemed to have every kid depending on him, ready to follow his commands. It also seemed like there were many kids who were ready to kill him.

Drake half walked, half stumbled to the stolen car and waited for me there. I glanced at the ocean one last time, and gazed at the horizon. "Are you coming?" Drake whined, impatient. He was already in the car, his head resting against the seat, gripping the steering wheel with both hands.

"Of course." I jogged to the car and sat down, placing my hand on top of Drake's.

--

Drake walked into Caine's office, as confident and as cocky as usual. He held my hand tightly in a locked grip, as if he never planned to let go, and sat down on the couch, making sure that I was right next to him. I was positive that Caine and Diana had been in the middle of a conversation, for now they stared at us wide eyed, looking for some sort of explanation. Drake didn't seem to notice, for he continued to sit proudly on the couch and casually put his arm over my shoulders. I leaned back, trying to sink as far possible into the sofa cushions, feeling extremely awkward.

"We didn't get them." Drake informed Caine, ignoring his gaping. "Sammy has them, and they're heading North on his motorboat." Drake clenched his fists and gritted his teeth, obviously still ticked off about getting outsmarted more then once this afternoon.

"We?" Diana asked, picking up on the word.

"Yes." Drake replied casually. "Gretchen and I."

"And why is she here?" Caine demanded, finally getting his voice back. He didn't look angry, just frazzled.

"She's my girlfriend." Drake announced, and I confirmed it with a weak nod. He grinned, light glittering off of his white shark teeth. As if to emphasize his announcement, Drake leaned over and pressed his lips firmly against mine, his hot breath on my mouth. His lips were soft and gentle, moving over mine like drifting clouds. After a few mments which felt much to short, Drake pulled away, his face smug with satisfaction.

I leaned against Drake with embarrassment when I saw that Caine and Diana had resumed their positions of staring at us in disbelief.

Diana shook herself from the trance like state first. "You've got a girlfriend?" Diana studied me closely, like a might be a trick, designed to fool her. "How did you manage that, Drake?" Drake just glared at her. Diana turned to me. "Hey, I'm Diana." She smiled and held her hands out, as if wanting to shake mine. I slowly put one of my hands in front of me since Drake was still holding the other one, but as soon as he saw my hand move outwards, he grabbed it as well.

Drake turned to Diana, his facial expression aggitated. She glowered back at him, her eyes dark with dislike, and I briefly wondered how long they could keep this up for. Drake looked like he was ready to murder her, which was an understatement. I was grateful when Caine spoke up, disrupting any argument that had been about to erupt.

"How do you know she's loyal to you, Drake?" Caine demanded skeptical. "What if she will just report back to Sam when he asks her to?"

I wasn't sure whether I should answer that or not.

"I don't." Drake admitted, looking at me. "But she helped me many times throughout the day."

"Like?" Caine prompted.

"She told me how to find which room Astrid and her brother were hiding in." Drake told them. "And she didn't once try to run off."

I knew it was a big mistake contributing to the conversation, but I wanted them to believe me. "Excuse me." I got up from the couch and stood defiantly next to Drake. "I'm with Drake now, not anyone else. So if Drake says that we're going to take Sam down, I'm with him. But don't get me wrong, I'm not a pet." Drake grinned at me, this time not malisciously, but in a compassionate way, as if seeing something from a new perspective. He gently pecked my cheek, despise the mock gagging noises coming from Diana.

"Okay." Caine agreed. "But if you make one move to betray us, Gretchen, you'll be in for it. Just like Drake and Diana. You're with us now, so loyalty is critical, or else."

"Over my dead body." Drake snarled, stiffening. I realized that Caine had his hands slightly raised. "If you try to kill her, you're going to have to go through me, first."

"Like it would make a difference." Diana muttered, regardless of Drake's penetrating glare.

"Relax." Caine commanded, rolling his eyes. He sat back down on to the mayor's chair. "Now that Drake has introduced his girlfriend to us," I noticed how Caine was looking meaningfully at Diana when he said that. "We need to get down to more serious matters. There's a kid at Coates, Andrew. It's his fifteenth birthday tomorrow, and we're going to pay him a little visit. And yes, that means you to, Gretchen. Diana, go get Computer Jack tomorrow morning and meet us back here. You already know why we're going there, so Drake, feel free to explain it to Gretchen if you want."

Drake nodded, and I looked at him with eager eyes. "Later." Drake whispered, obviously bored by the subject. I took it that hunting people down was more his thing, rather then paying people little social visits.

"I expect Gretchen has a place to stay tonight?" Caine asked, trying to be considerate.

"She'll sleep in my apartment, with me." Drake confirmed, then decided to reword his sentance. "I mean, you know, she can sleep on one of the spare beds, or on the couch, if she wants." Drake clarified.

I wasn't really sure I wanted to, since that was supposedly where the rest of the thugs lived as well, but I didn't want to argue with Drake. I shuddered at the thought of sleeping next to Orc.

"Don't worry." Drake told me, as if reading my thoughts. "Orc, Howard, and Panda have their own apartment. I moved out a few days ago. So we'll be alone." Drake winked at me, turning his head so that Caine and Diana were unable to see. I smiled, mainly because I could wipe the thought of Orc clear out of my mind. I wondered in discomfort what Drake might try, but quickly shook that thought out of my head as well. We were both only fourteen. I had mainly been sleeping at my house, or Julie's.

"It's getting dark." Caine pointed out, looking out of the office's window. "I'm going to go get something to eat." Drake nodded, and we both slowly walked out of the room, followed by Caine and Diana.

Drake and I headed in the direction of his apartment which was only a minute away from the town hall. Caine and Diana headed in the direction of the MacDonald's, run by a kid named Albert.

It was slightly chilly outside, but the wind tore through my thin black tshirt like it was a weightless piece of cloth. Even though I was wearing jeans, I couldn't help myself from shivering ever so slightly.

"Are you cold?" Drake asked slowly, studying me as I rubbed my arms. He was wearing a baggy green tshirt and jeans, looking toasty warm. I didn't even have time to reply before he asnwered my subconscious pleas, putting his arm around my shoulders and pulling me against him so that my head was pressed against his neck.

We reached his apartment in a minute, and entered. The guns were still spread out on the kitchen table from earlier this morning, but other then that, Drake's apartment was unnaturally clean. The kitchen counters were shiny and polished, and any book or souvenir had been placed neatly on a shelf, resulting in a tidy look. I drifted around the apartment for a while, getting to know where everything was, while Drake fished out a few bags of chips from the nearly empty cupboards. I guessed that I'd be spending a fairly large ammount of time here, since I was now Drake's.

"Gretchen?" Drake called, motionning for me to come over to the kitchen. "Um, where do you want to sleep? It doesn't really matter. There's a spare bed, and then there's the couch..."

"Could I see the bed?" I questionned, noticing how close the sofa was to the front door. After my day today, I just wanted to be safe and protected.

So the best place for me at the moment was as close as possible to my sadistic, psychopathic boyfriend.

Drake led me into a room next to his that was small, and contained a little bed. It smelled quite dusty, but I didn't mind at all.

"Are you sure you don't want the couch?" Drake suggested, confused by how I could choose an old bed to a comfy sofa.

"Yes. Thanks for the offer, though." I gave him a grateful smile.

Drake led me back to the kitchen and opened the drawers. "So, what do you want for dinner? We don't have much here."

I shrugged, and came to investigate along side him. "How about pasta?" I suggested, holding up a box of spaghetti. "We'll just need some boiled water and a pinch of salt."

Drake nodded, and I could tell that he rarely cooked. He took a pot from one of the cupboards, filled it with water, and placed it on the hot stove. Then I sprinkled a dash of salt into the pot.

"There." I opened the box of pasta. "When it starts to boil we can put the spaghetti in."

Drake nodded again, and sank down onto the couch, looking tired. I sat down next to him, resting my head on his shoulders.

"Are you tired?" I asked, eyeing the dark circles under his eyes.

"Yeah." Drake admitted, shutting his eyes for a brief moment. "I've been staying up almost every night, patrolling the town. It will be nice to just get a good night's sleep for once." I closed my eyes as well for a moment, feeling truely safe, warm, and content.

A small part of my conscience was asking me questions, though. I wondered how I was comfortable lying next to someone who had been ready to kill me. How I was going along with Drake's devious plans. How I could kiss him and feel the need for more. Just because I didn't want to shoot anyone didn't make me a good person.

I wondered if there was a reason that I had come up with the idea of kissing him to save my life. Could I really be falling for Drake Merwin? I shook my head, not ready to give in to my conscience.

"So, what are we going to Coates Academy for?" I whispered, taking my head off of his shoulders.

Drake seemed disappointed with both my question and my reaction, but answered me anyways. "When Andrew blinks out, we're going to tape record the whole thing. We're going to see if Andrew using his powers at the exact moment when he turns fifteen causes him to stay here and not disappear."

"And Andrew is okay with all of this?" I asked, even though I already knew the answer.

"Probably not." Drake smirked, looking incredibly smug. "But who cares?" He gazed into my eyes, and I suddenly felt extremely worried for Andrew. I nervously bit my lip and my pressed my hands together, avoiding Drake's intimate stare.

But after a minute or two, I felt it hard to look away from his eyes, filled with malintentions and sadistic thoughts. they were so deep, like hands grabbing you and pulling you farther into an ominous darkness, but just holding you there, watching you struggle and try to get free."

I felt myself lean forwards, and despite my screaming conscience, desperately felt the urge to taste his sweet lips and put them against mine. Drake must have felt the same way, for he pressed his lips against mine and held them there, wrapping his arms around my waist and pushing me closer towards him. I gripped his hair in my fingers, and breathed in his hot breath. In a distant world, I heard the timer beep. I wanted to ignore it, but I slowly pulled away and looked at Drake with regretful eyes. He glowered at the stove, but reluctantly got up and poured the steaming hot water into the sink. I took two large bowls out of the cupboard and placed them next to Drake, grabbing two sodas out of the fridge at the same time. We ate in silence.

I felt glad that everything was quiet, because it gave me time to get my head on straight.

I knew that it was official. I was in love with Drake Merwin, and there was no turning back. I wanted to ne near him, to be in his presence, to get held by him. But I couldn't understand why. He was a messed up kid. People were scared of him. Caine used him to hurt other kids, because Drake seemed to have no conscience at all. But I felt drawn to him, like an invisible force was pushing me towards him, pushing him towards me.

He was good looking, sure, but not amazingly handsome. His sandy colored hair was slightly shaggy and wind blown, his eyes dark and reserved, only open at certain moments of weakness. He had rosy skin, soft to the touch, and a slight build. But Drake was incredibly strong and very fast. I felt so useless compared to him. And his personality I didn't even want to try and decipher. All I could say was that he was disturbed. Seriously disturbed. But I was drawn to him and well as I was scared of him. I wanted to be near him as well as be far away from him. I wanted to feel his lips against mine as well as glare at him.

I finished my pasta, got up, and washed my dishes. I washed Drake's as well, seeing him put his plates in the sink after I did. When I was done that, Drake took my hand and we both crumpled onto the sofa, truely exhausted.

It was late at night, and I yawned. Drake yawned as well, and pulled me into his lap like earlier this afternoon. But this time he lay back on his side and rested his head aginst one of the couch cushions. I lay on my side as well, enjoying his warmth and his arms securely around my waist. I lay my head gently against his chest and put my arms around his neck.

"Goodnight, Drake." I murmured, kissing him lightly on the lips. I could get used to this.

"Goodnight, Gretchen." Drake kissed my hair, and we both drifted off into a deep sleep.

--

I woke up with a start.

I had dreamt that Drake and I were fighting Sam, guns in our hands. Drake had lunged towards him, but not quickly enough. Sam had raised his palms and had blasted Drake right in the chest, sending him flying backwards onto the hard concrete, Drake's head cracking against the pavement.

I had ran to Drake's side, screaming his name. Sam had walked towards me, palms outstretched, like he was about to kill us both. but then he had stopped, placing both of his hands at his sides.

"Gretchen," Sam had whispered. "I don't want to hurt you. You're a good person. But Drake isn't. Drake's a bad person, Gretchen. And you'll end up getting hurt if you are with him. Many people want him dead, and they won't spare you in the process. be careful, Gretchen."

Then he had disappeared, leaving Drake and I by oursleves. I had turned to Drake, my eyes filled with tears.

And then suddenly Caine had appeared, anger in his eyes. "You've betrayed us!" Caine had cried, rage taking over his usually calm tone. "Traitors!"

"No!" I had cried, trembling all over in fear. "No!"

"Yes." Caine had smiled a sad smile. "And now you will pay." Caine had raised his palms and lifted a giant piller from the ground, raising it high in the air directly above us.

Then it had dropped from the sky.

And I had woken up.

I was still trembling all over with fear as I sat up. I heard Drake stir, his arms tightening around me as he sat up as well. He rubbed his eyes and turned to me. "Hey, you're up." Drake smiled, but then frowned in concern, realizing that I was a little paler then I should be. "Are you okay?" There was alarm in his voice, like he was actually scared.

"Yeah." I nodded weakly, but my eyes were still wide, and as I held my hands out, I realized that I was still trembling.

"What's wrong?" Drake asked, as sincerely as he could. It still sounded like he was angry, but I knew that he meant well.

"I had a dream." I managed to tell him, trying to calm myself down. "You were hurt by Sam. And Caine... he was about to kill us both." I stopped talking, realizing how foolish I was being. It was only a dream. Just something that my conscience had made up to get me back for before.

I expected Drake to laugh his harsh laugh, or maybe even to pat my shoulder. but instead he wrapped his arms around me and pulled me into a tight hug. "You're fine." Drake assured me, kissing my hair. As long as your with me, you'll be safe. I'll protect you with my life." I shook my head, but Drake ignored me. "We've got to meet Caine in a few hours, so why don't we do some patrolling? You know, to lighten the mood."

To lighten the mood. Ha.

"Okay, sure." I nustled against Drake's chest, feeling much better already.

--

Even though I wasn't scared anymore, I couldn't stop thinking about the dream, and how coincedently similar it was to my life right now.

Even though Sam was a good guy, and it would take a lot to get him to hurt someone, I still felt threatened by him as well as Caine. I finally understood why Drake had such a dislike to the kids who had powers.

They had no right to be the leaders or order us around. The only reason they were able to do that was because they were powerful, and no one wanted to get hurt. But it wasn't fair to us, the normal people, as you could put it. The ones that weren't treated as specially as Sam or Caine, or any of the other freaks for that matter. We all had a right to be equal, but no one could put up a fight. No one could take them down.

I was aware that hanging around Drake was dangerous, but I realized that he wasn't always going to be there to protect me. One day he wasn't going to be there, and I wouldn't be able to survive if I was as helpless and as easily frightened as I was right now.

I needed to find a way to defend myself, because little did everyone know, there was an easy death towering over us as long as Sam and Caine were around.

I grabbed Drake's arm and pulled him into the shadows of the alley that we were passing and looked at him. "Teach me." I breathed, holding out my gun. "I want to be just like you."

"What?" Drake was surprised, and also confused by my sudden demand. "You want to be like... me? What do you mean?"

"I want to be able to be as powerful as you." I clicked the safety off of my gun, the sound echoing off of the brick walls. "I want to be able to fight, to defend myself, and feel nothing."

Drake studied me carefully, eyeing my facial expression skeptically. Then he grinned, his pointy teeth menacing. "All right." He held out his hand and I took it willingly. "Let's get started."

--

My mouth dropped open as I watched Drake slap some kid across the face. "Don'e ever talk back to me again," Drake growled, his voice low with anger. "Or you'll be dead meat, kid." But it wasn't because I was horrified. I was in awe of him.

Drake turned to me and grinned, full of maliscious pleasure. "See how easy that was? You just have to act tough."

"Okay." I shifted excitedly from foot to foot, passing my hands over the metal pistol that somehow seemed to always be in my hands. "But what if they don't listen to me?"

Drake rolled his eyes. "It wouldn't matter if you were a little kid. As long as you have a gun, people will fear you."

"And without any weapons at all, people still fear you." I muttered so quietly that I was barely able to hear myself. That's what I wanted people to think of me. That I was dangerous. But I took it that people didn't just fear Drake because he knew how to fight. It was also because he liked to hurt people.

"Go on, Gretchen. You told me you wanted to practice." Drake smirked, his eyebrows raised.

"Ugh." I rolled my eyes. "You're incorrigible, Drake. I'll do it, but doesn't there have to be a reason for it? Like, some kid has to be breaking the law?"

"You forget that I make the laws." Drake gave me a sly look. "There's a kid right now, carrying a baseball bat. Go reprimand him."

--

There's a whole section here that I still need to type up.

--

I gave a pitiful little sigh. That meant I got no time to sleep.

Drake studied my wary expression and flashed me a bright smile. "Don't worry." He patted my shoulder as sympathetically as he could. "You can sleep in the car."

--

The way back wasn't nearly as tough as the way there, mainly because I was unconscious the whole time. Drake had woken me up by opening my car door, sending me tumbling onto the concrete like a lifeless ragdoll. We were now back in another car, Computer Jack driving, Drake and I crouched in the backseat, lowering our heads so that not even a hair was visible out of the back windows. We were both holding guns in our hands, the weapon that I was now so used to handling. It seemed like a necessity, a deadly pistol guarantying control over others.

Drake had explained his plan to us before we had left, and I had to admit, he had really thought out all of the angles that Sam might take. We only needed Computer Jack to stall Sam for a few seconds, and then we had them right where we wanted them. Drake would put Astrid at gunpoint, threatening Sam. It was Sam's decision, but everyone knew that Drake wouldn't hesitate. Drake would kill her. In fact, Drake could threaten any one of them, including Quinn, who Sam had been having a few friendship problems with. Sam wouldn't risk anyone's life, except his own, which is why Drake had decided not to threaten him directly.

Caine wanted Sam brought to him alive, which pissed Drake off immensly. But no one could argue with Caine, unless they were willing to suffer the consequences. And considering that Caine had been plotting Sam's death for days on end, if Sam wasn't alive when we brought him back to Coates, we wouldn't be alive for much longer either.

"Get down!" Drake hissed, placing his hand on top of my head and pushing down. "I can see them up ahead!"

"I'm already down." I grumbled, rolling my eyes. I shook my head back and forth until he got the message and removed his hand. I felt the car slowing down, casually rolling down the nearly deserted roads. I heard the mechanical buzz as Computer Jack rolled down his window and stuck his head out of the car.

"Hey, guys." Computer Jack stalled, nervously tapping the steering wheel. Astrid was leaning against the side of the car. "Oh good, you found Taylor. I was looking for her everywhere. She left Coates Academy a while ago, and I think she's sick."

It took me a few seconds to realize that Drake had silently opened up the trunk and was sneaking out the back. I hurried after him, carefully placing my feet on the ground so that they made no sound. If I blew this with my carelessness, I didn't want to deal with Drake's rath.

"On three." Drake whispered, his voice full of excitement and anticipation. "One, two, three!"

Drake and I lept out from behind the still car, and in one swift movement, had everyone where we wanted them to be. Drake had his gun pressed firmly into the side of Astrid's head, and I was doing the same to Edilio, following Drake's movement.

Drake was staring at Sam, the smirk on his face smug with satisfaction. "Nobody move. All we have to do is pull the trigger.

At he mention of the word "We", Sam's head snapped sideways towards me, his eyes widening at the sight. He grew a little pale, realizing that more then one of his friends were at risk. Sam put his hands up in the air and frowned. "We're not moving."

Drake laughed, dark and menacing. "You think I don't know about your powers? I'm not that easily fooled. Put your hands at your sides and keep them there, Sammy."

"What do you want us to do?" I jumped a little bit as Edilio spoke, forgetting for a moment that he was right next to me.

"Shut up." Drake snapped, not bothering to turn around. "Nobody talk, either. Gretchen?"

"Yeah?" A smile broke out across my face, which felt extremely wierd. I guess my physical reactions had already adjusted to my decision yesterday. Good.

"Why don't you give the orders?" Drake pressed his gun harder into Astrid's head. "It's good practice."

"Alright." I stepped forward, bringing Edilio with me. "We're goign to climb into the truck one by one. Get in nice and slow." I used my free hand to point towards the back of the truck, feeling a thrilling shiver run through me.

"What about the girl?" Astrid narrowed her eyes at Drake, pretending not to be intimidated by him. She didn't look afraid, but I knew she was. "We're not leaving her here."

"It's not your decision." Drake smirked, pointing to his gun. "The guy holding the gun gives the orders."

"The girl is coming with us." Sam told Drake flatly, crossing his arms.

"Whatever." Drake sighed dramatically, rolling his eyes in mock exasperation. I could guess why he was giving in to Sam's requests. He either didn't want to give Sam more time to come up with ways to escape or wanted Taylor back at Coates. Maybe both. Either way, I had to follow Edilio with watchful eyes as Sam and him struggled to lift Taylor off of the ground and into the front seat, next to the very stunned Computer Jack.

I studied Sam as he slowly walked back to the other side of the truck where Drake was waiting with Astrid in his clutches. Sam's eyes showed that he was deep in thought, relying on a clever plan to save himself and his friends. He moved like a zombie, not registering what was happening, in his own world, just frantically weighing his options.

Make a move? Drake would shoot Astrid.

Blast Drake? Drake would probably still be able to fire.

My thoughts got caught on a possibility that could actually work.

Only Sam wouldn't actually realize it. Would he? No. I shook my head. Even if he did put that option into consideration, Sam could never pull it off. He wouldn't risk Astrid's life. Everyone's life. Would he?

My eyes met his again, and in a second I realized that he knew I was directly in front of him. Sam wasn't caught up in his daydreams anymore.

I was his only hope of escaping, and I stood a few feet away from Drake, vulnerable.

What happened next was unimaginable. One second I was staring Sam in the face, waiting for him to make his move, and the next second his palm was flat against the side of my head, his hand shaking ever so slightly. I couldn't tell if Sam was shaking with regret or anger. But it didn't matter.

I was now just another bargaining chip in this deadly game.

"Drake!" I managed to squeak, drawing his attention. I wasn't scared of Sam. I was terrified of how everyone would be if Sam and his friends escaped. Four heads whirled around to face Sam, Edilio, and I in our little chain of reactions.

"Let Astrid go," Sam threatened, his voice firm with posed confidence. "And I'll let Gretchen go. Then nobody will get hurt."

I winced as I forced myself to look at Drake's face, expecting rage to be radiating through every pour in his body. But his expression made me wince in another way. Not fear, but guilt. Drake was torn between the two things that he loved. If I had been anyone else, I knew that Drake would have shot Astrid on the spot, not caring who he hurt in the process of taking Sam down.

But I wasn't anyone else. I was the only one who had ever been this close to Drake Merwin, the only one who Drake Merwin had ever let come this close to him.

I was aware that Sam didn't have the power to kill me, but even challenging Sam like Sam had just done to Drake would put my life in danger. I was shocked that Sam had resorted to such drastic measured.

"Go ahead." I forced myself to shake all of the terror out of my tone. "I doubt you would ever have the nerve to do it. But just remember, if you do, you'll kill everyone around us. Blast me and I'll shoot your friend here." I nodded in Edilio's direction, ignoring Drake's shocked expression. "Then Drake will shoot your precious girlfriend, and probably everyone else, including yourself. I'm like a stick of dynamite, and your the match, Sam." I stared into his eyes, proving that I was giving him an option. I knew what he'd do, but I was challenging him anyways.

The muscles in Drake's mouth twitched, so I held up my finger to my lips. "Shh." I grinned as malisciously and deviously as I could, trying to replicate Drake's shark like grin, and raised my eyebrows, offering Sam a choice. I made my voice smooth and acidic for a moment. "So which is it, Sammy? Are you going to step away from the danger or are you going to create the explosion?"

Sam's face crumpled, and his arms dropped to his sides in defeat.

"What happened to you, Gretchen?" Astrid's words stung me like she was scratching my skin with her nails. "You were so nice, so..." Astrid paused, searching for the right word. "Sane. I don't understand. It's like Drake has corrupted you. You aren't the same girl that you used to be."

"You're right." My voice hardened, growing low and serious. "I'm not."

"Now get in the car!" Drake shouted, his sudden regained voice startling us and making us all jump.

I glared at Sam, my stare burning into his, our eyes locked into a hold of betrayal. I had betrayed my friends, but Sam had betrayed me. We had turned our backs on eachother.

"Sam, move it!" Drake hissed, shoving him forward with his free hand. I could tell that Drake didn't like having his emotions played with, exposed for everyone to see.

Sam sank slowly into the truck, his shoulders sagging and his eyes dropping to the ground. Astrid, Little Pete, Quinn, Edilio, some new girl, and her dog followed him, crowding in the back. Everyone was gazing off in different directions, silent, freaked out by what had just happened. Well, except for Astrid. She continued her harsh rant, her words getting on my nerves rather then hurt me.

"You're both psychopaths. You know that, right? Astrid made an attempt at making me feel guilty. I guess that she thought that my silence was me regretting my actions, because she continued to barrade me. "You could do the right thing, which would be to let us go. But you won't, will you? Because you care to much about your sadistic boyfriend then your friends."

Drake gave a loud sigh, and leaned towards me, his eyes still locked on Sam. "Should I make her shut up, or do you want to do it?" Drake held up a clenched fist as he whispered into my ear. "I can't stand much more of this."

"Go ahead." I muttered, rolling my eyes and throwing my free hand up in the air in exasperation. "She's really starting to piss me off as well."

The truck suddenly rolled to a stop, so I knew that we were back at Coates Academy.

"Darn it." Drake swore at his missed chance to hurt Astrid. "We're here already." Then his mood lightened up. "Oh well, now it's time to have some fun."

I helped Drake escort everyone out of the truck and onto the ground. We directed them to stand in a straight line, and like a parade, we made our way around the large building, moving at a slow pace. We rounded the corner to the back of the school, revealing hundreds of kids holding cement blocks. I looked away, feeling as dizzy as I had the first time.

I heard Astrid swear and the new girl cry out as Panda hit her in the knees with his baseball bat. I hadn't even heard him come to meet us.

"This is sick, man." Sam whispered, his voice nervous. "Who did that to all of those kids?"

"That would be me." Drake straightened up a few inches, extremely proud of his accomplishments. "And I didn't even have a gun with me at the time. It just goes to show you that having the power doesn't make any difference."

I thought about that for a moment, laying out Drake's words in my head. I wouldn't have said that having the power made no difference, but everyone had their opinions. I did agree with Drake about most of his argument, though. It wasn't about who had the power or who was bigger. It was about who had the will to take action and get things done that needed to be done.

But this.

I took a quick glance at the cinder block children.

This didn't need to be done.

"No, Drake." Astrid interrupted my thoughts with a sneer. "It just goes to show us that you're a psychopath."

"Shut up." Drake pointed his finger at Sam. "If I were you I wouldn't piss me off. It just takes one pull of the trigger."

Astrid sighed and lowered her head, her eyes still narrowed.

"Now this is what you're going to do." Drake motioned his hand towards a big bucket filled with dark grey wet cement. "You're going to take turns sticking your hands in here and keeping them there for a minute. Then voila, no more powers."

"This is crazy." Sam muttered, shaking his head. "You're crazy, Drake."

Drake ignored Sam's jabs. "You first, Sammy. Go ahead, just place them in there."

Sam hesitated, stepping a foot backwards from the wheelbarrow. He snuck a look at Astrid, and then mashed his hands into the liquid rock. I watched, my eyes wide with surprise.

"You can take them out now." Drake chuckled, his face bright with triumph. "Your turn, Astrid The Genius."

I saw Sam slightly pull at his hands, and to his dismay, the block of cement moved with them. He tried to mask his face of pure horror, replacing it with a bored expression, but I caught his eyes frantically darting from the cinder block to his wrists, in a frenzied panic.

Astrid was next, slightly more nervous then Sam had been. Her hands were shaking as she placed them in the wet cement, her face terrified, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Jeez, it's just cement." I rolled my eyes, smirking.

Astrid was now sobbing, her tears falling nto the ground, and I didn't understand why she was so sad. We weren't killing her, for crying out loud. But that's when I realized that she was staring at Little Pete, crying louder and louder, trying to draw his attention away from his video game. So that he would sense her distress and send them both back to Perdido Beach.

"Hey, hey, hey!" I waved my arms at Astrid, standing in between her and Little Pete. "Whatever you're trying to do, like, get his attention or whatever, is not going to work! So just stop it!"

Drake's face lit up in registration, his eyes giving me a silent thanks. Then they grew angry, ticked off that she was still trying to find ways to escape. "So that's your plan, huh?" Drake grinned when he glanced down at the wheelbarrow. "Well, times up, anyways. Try to free your hands."

Astrid struggled for a few seconds, giving up after she realized that her hands were stuck.

"You next." Drake pointed at the new girl, who had all but blended into the brick wall behind us. She slowly came forward, her dog at her side.

"You don't want to do that." Sam warned warily. "Lana's a healer."

"A what?" Drake looked skeptical, obviously wondering why Sam was trying to delay the process.

"A healer." Sam managed a weak smile. "I was hurt real bad, but Lana healed me. Do you want to see the scar?"

Caine pushed his way through us, Diana on his heels. Trailing after them was Computer Jack, who had just informed them of our arrival. "A healer, huh?" Caine squinted at Sam, frowning. "No, don't show us your scar, Sam. Drake, give the girl something to heal.

"My pleasure." Drake pressed his gun against Sam's knee in one quick, swift movement. I had started to close my eyes, but I heard my name being called. "hey, Gretchen." Drake smiled at me, winking. "How about two somethings?"

I didn't even have time to reply before Caine interrupted Drake's offer with his impatient tone. "Get on with it, will you?"

Drake shrugged at me, as if saying "Your loss.". I heard a gunshot, and felt a drop of warm liquid splatter onto my arm.

"Yeah!" Drake pumped his fist into the air as Sam sank down to the ground, half of his leg blown off. It was a gruesome sight, so I turned my head to focus on something else, my head becoming fogged up with the sight of raw, exposed flesh and bne.

Sam moaned, unable to grip his leg in his hands, unable to stop the bleeding. All eyes were on Lana, who quickly placed her palm on Sam's wound and closed her eyes with concentration. I heard another moan, coming from behind me, and suddenly all of the concrete blocks disappeared, vanishing.

I blinked a few times, shocked by the sudden turn of events in such little time. Sam's hands were free, as well as everyone else's. I watched as Caine and Diana spun around and bolted towards the school, leaving Drake and I to fend for ourselves. Quite cowardly, really.

But Drake didn't pause. He whirled himself around so that his gun was now pointed directly at Little Pete, who was obliviously picking his dirty yet still intact video game from the ground.

Suddenly the most important fact hit me, delayed.

Sam's hands were free.

"Drake!" I cried, helplessly yelling out his name. But I was to late. There was a blast of white and green light, and Drake's gun dropped to the ground, out of his flaming hand. His burning hand. I gaped at the charcoaled flesh, horrible brown smoke rising into the air.

Drake screamed in terror and sprinted towards the school, the wind fanning the flames, making them bigger and more painful.

As soon as Drake was out of my sight, I locked my gaze with Sam's, furious. His hands were raised, pointed at my head, ready to do to me what he had just done to Drake.

"You," I spat, somehow not afraid, but steaming with anger. "You're going to pay." I unclenched my tight fists and faced my palms at Sam, feeling a sharp current of electricity run through me, throwing me off balance. Stumbling, I stared, frozen, at the dark hole in the tree directly behind Sam's head.

I didn't believe it.

I was a freak.

No better then the others.

"How did you just do that?" Astrid stepped back a few feet, her voice trembling with fear. She clutched Little Pete's shoulder, who had now settled down and resumed playing his video game.

But I barely heard her.

I was to busy staring in pure horror at my hands.

I didn't know what to do.

Drake was hurt. I couldn't tell him what had happened. Besides, he had been through enough. I didn't need to inform him that the one person on this earth who he could relate to had now betrayed him.

I was a monster.

I could now see Sam crumpled on the ground, knocked out from the pain in his nearly destroyed knee. The others were waiting, their eyes wide, wondering what I'd do next. They were afraid.

But not as afraid as I was.

So I turned, and ran.

I sprinted away from the school, my hands clenched into tight little balls at my sides. I gritted my teeth together, angry at myself, angry at what I'd become.

What had happened, exactly?

One moment I was extremely furious, and the next I was shooting lightning out of my fingers.

Lightning, for crying out loud.

I had no idea what had triggered it, but now I was a freak, just like Sam, and Caine, and the others who I had disliked so much.

And Drake. I didn't even know if he was alive. If I'd still be alive when he found out that I'd bolted from the scene. How he would react when he heard about the power.

I didn't want to tell Drake about it, to have to face him again. I should have been at his side right now, accessing the damage, helping him.

But I wasn't.

I was out in the middle of nowhere, roaming the streets, my feet dragging on the ground. I briefly wondered how far away I was from Perdido Beach, and if I should head back there, find a place to sleep. I hadn't talked to Julie in a while, seeing as though I had been with Drake most of the time. Would I be able to find her somewhere? I felt guilty, ditching Julie so suddenly like that. But now that I thought about it, it wasn't even my fault. I had chosen to stay with Drake instead of death.

The sun was setting now, leaving a low glow of dark orange in the sky, basking on the horizon. I was sleepy, not having slept much on the way home from Piggyback Mountain. My tired eyelids were growing heavy, so I decided that it would be best for me to find a place to sleep soon, so that I didn't pass out on the road and get run over by a car.

I scanned the side of the highway, searching for a house or even a nice patch of soft grass, but I could only see the desert for miles around. I was a few hours away from Coates, even more from Perdido Beach. But I wasn't returning back to Caine anytime soon. I just wanted to go my own way.

"This is pointless." I muttered to myself, squinting as the bright sun shone in my eyes. My stomach rumbled, reminding me that I hadn't eaten anything since this morning. "There's nothing out here."

Then I thought of the fiery shack, the one that I had spotted the night before. It must have had some source of water and food, since that's probably where Sam and the others had been hiding out for the last few days.

So I set my destination. It was about twenty miles away, which equated to half a day's walk. I could probably walk faster at night, since it would be much hotter during the day, so I gave in to my drowsiness and let my knees sink to the soft ground on the side of the road. I had walked a few meters into the deserted land, so I was conviniently hidden from the view of anyone who might have been passing on the highway. All I needed was for Caine or one of his followers to be passing in a car and find me. I would have quite a little bit of trouble explaining to them what exactly I was doing here, and why I had ran away.

I lay down on the ground, letting my head rest in the soft sand. I closed my eyes and whispered "I hope you're okay, Drake.".

--

I woke up to nearly total darkness, the shadows of the deserted land outlined by the faint glow of the moonlight. I had to admit, it was quite eerie, lying on the ground, hearing nothing but a coyote's howl far away from where I was. Shivering as I got up onto my feet, I realized how cold it was out here, without the sunlight to warm me up. Or Drake.

I shook that thought out of my head.

As of now, I was by myself, alone. I didn't have Drake to protect me anymore, so I would just have to manage on my own. I started walking, still hazy with sleep. I was just guessing the direction in which the shack would be, trying to remember the place where we had all spotted it from the top of Piggyback Mountain.

I knew that I was being really stupid, wandering off into the endless desertm without telling anyone, not bringing any water or food with me. I was relying on the shack that I had seen from a few miles away to provide me with what I needed, which was a pretty big assumption to make.

What if the shack was empty? What if there was no shack anymore, if the shack had burnt to the ground? I had no idea what I'd do at that point.

And what if... the coyotes came back?

I stared at my hands for the first time since I'd almost blasted Sam. The cause of my absence from Coates Academy.

I didn't know how to control my powers like Caine could. Did I have to be angry? No, I doubted that. I was pretty sure that Caine could use his powers freely, at any time that he wanted.

Could I?

I slowly stuck my hands out into the air, palms out, like I had done that one time before. I bit my lip, scared of what would happen next. Should I think angry thoughts? Or would that be dumb?

I shrugged, cracking a small smile. It wouldn't hurt to test them out. I mean, I had left my gun back at Coates, so I was pretty much defenseless now, unless I could figure out how to work my powers.

I hesitated.

My powers. Was I really accepting this A wave of guilt washed over me, bringing back thoughts of Drake and how mad he would be when he found out about all of this. Maybe he already had.

I stomped my foot. No.

This was my life. Drake wasn't part of it anymore. I was going to do what I wanted.

I gathered angry memories up in my head, like the time Sam had hurt Drake. I felt my body go stiff with tension, my teeth clench together, my eyes position themselves into a raging glare. I steadied myself, my feet planted firmly on the ground, and waited. It was a few minutes until I finally gave up and placed my hands at my sides.

Huh.

So maybe it wasn't as simple as that. I figured that I had to have some sort of objective to fufill in order to use the power, instead of just randomly getting angry in the middle of the desert.

Besides, there wasn't even anything to shoot at around here, and at the thought of the coyotes, I hope it would stay that way.

I continued to trudge along, my feet slightly dragging in the sand. I was thirsty, but I didn't ahve any source of water with me. After a while I wasn't able to block out the devastating thoughts anymore. I had to assume that I was heading towards nothing, just putting myself deeper and deeper into the solemn desert. I was probably not even going the right way, leading myself to the ocean.

I forced my reluctant feet farther, each step making it harder to take the next. My shoes felt like rocks, attached to my feet, weighing me down, dragging on the sand.

But after a few hours, I pushed myself to far, and tumbled onto the ground, face first.

"Ugh." I spit out a mouthful of dirt, frowning. Now my mouth felt even drier. I shook my head, discouraged. I wasn't going to be able to find it. I would die here, all because of my stupid mistakes. There was no shack, no nothing. Just sand.

I held back my tears, but wiped my eyes anyways. What was I supposed to do now?

Suddenly I spotted a dark spot on the horizon. It was still, standing there. I blinked a few times, trying to decide if what I was seeing was real. Could it be a figment of my imagination? Possibly. I was thirsty, hungry, maybe now I was crazy. Seeing mirages.

I didn't care, though. There was no where else to go, especially in the desert.

I wondered why there had been a shack in the middle of the desert anyways. Who would live here? I didn't think about it for long, seeing that that didn't concern me at all.

Right now I wanted to survive, and that was exactly what I was going to do. I was going to take care of myself and do what needed to be done.

Narrowing my eyes at the charcoaled shack, I set off towards it, my head held up high in the air.


	2. Part 2

Finally.

I stumbled past a few charcoaled branches that lay on the ground, trying to ignore my nearly unbearable desires. My hands were inches away from the singed door, kept upright by only a few weak brass hinges nailed to the shack's walls. The strangely placed house was still standing, despise the odds that it should have been burned to the ground by now.

I quickly scanned the perimeter, searching for anything out of the ordinary, like murderous coyotes or strangers. Not that I expected anyone, or anything, to be living here after the fire, but just in case.

After endless hours of digging up infuriating memories from the depths of my mind and aiming my palms towards the sky, I still hadn't been able to get anything to shoot from my hands. Not even a little spark. So I had given up trying, for now.

But that meant that I was still completely defenseless, especially when I was as weak as I was.

My thoughts snapped back to my survival, so I focused my eyes on a shiny piece of metal attached to the side of the shack, sparkling in the sun. I squinted, taking a few unstable steps towards it, and realized that it was a spout. A water spout.

A grin broke out onto my face, and I leaped towards the appliance, a sudden burst of energy. My fingers fumbling with the slippery metal, I managed to twist it sideways so that a stream of cool and luscious water spilled out, into my mouth and all over the ground.

Pausing between mouthfuls, I tried to remember the last time that I had felt this happy. So content, so free. Even though it had only been a few days ago since the FAYZ, it had felt like weeks ago. Days ago since everyone fifteen years and older had disappeared. Days ago since Caine had come to Perdido Beach. Days ago since I had met Drake.

I bit down on my lip, determined not to ruin the moment. Instead, I concentrated on how I felt physically. My thirst was now quenched, but I was still incredibly hungry. It had been almost two days since I'd last eaten, and I was growing weary from the lack of nutrition.

I savored the wetness on my lips, satisfied, and forced myself to shut off the faucet and walk over to the front of the burned shack. Using a little but of the strength that I had left, I pushed open the door with my shoulder and eyed the inside, looking for something useful. An old stove, a comfortable chair, a tattered rug. And, to my complete joy, an opened cupboard, filled with tones of cans and packaged meals.

I stepped on the carpet, noticing how untidy it was in here. Empty pudding cups and fruit salad tins lay sprawled out on the floor, probably eaten by Sam and his friends. I kicked an old can of chile aside, wrinkling my nose as a few ants scurried out of it, and reached for the packaged food in front of me.

I hesitated for a brief moment, wondering what would happen if the owner of this place returned, but then dug in, realizing that he or she would have more important matters to deal with then a teenager rummaging through his or her house.

That is, if the owner came back.

Soon I was full, and lay back against the recliner, which smelled like sweat. As I waited for sleep to hit me, I planned my next move, thinking about what I wanted to do.

There was no way that I was heading back to Coates. I was done with that place, even if Drake was still alive. I wanted to see him again, to hold him, and let him tell me that everything was alright. Then we would maybe patrol the town for a little while and stroll back to his apartment to rest.

But I had to tell myself that even though some pretty wierd stuff had happened, my fantasies weren't realistic. They were what I wanted them to be, which was the opposite of what was happening right now.

I couldn't dwell on my past or my future.

I had to focus on the present.

I was in the middle of nowhere, sitting in a charcoaled shack, with no weapons. Where could I go?

I realized that I wasn't tired at all, despite my long walk, so I stood up and shuffled through multiple drawers, looking for anything that resembled a map. Maybe there were some more cabins just like this one, leading to a city. It was unlikely, but I knew that it would be useful to have something that could tell me where I was.

There wasn't much here except for a collection of books and a few documents which I didn't bother to flip open. I did sneak a peek at a copy of a driver's liscence though, curious to see who all these items belonged to.

Jim.

Huh. Jim's last name was scribbled out in black. I guessed he was the secretive sort of guy. But what was there to hide in the middle of the desert?

I realized in a shocked instant that it would be pretty easy to hide anything. Who would stumble across an old, wooden shack?

I shuddered, possibilities of Jim's real identity flooding into my mind. Was Jim a murderer who was hiding from the police? An undercover spy from another country? A gang member?

I caught myself after a few minutes, and frowned. It was a crossed out last name, for crying out loud! It didn't mean that Jim was dangerous. He was probably just being careful, not wanting to give out personal information to random strangers who were tresspassing. Like me, for example.

Enough of that. There had to be a map in here somewhere. I doubted that Jim would be stupid enough to live all alone without some way of telling where he was.

Maybe he had it stowed away in the closet for safekeeping, in case of an emergency. I turned the brass knob, and glanced around the slightly messy storage space. Sure enough, folded neatly on the top shelf was a piece of graphing paper, buildings and roads printed on it. I carefully picked it up, unfolding the map so that I could see where I was.

I flattened the paper out on the wooden floor, tracing my finger along the road from Perdido Beach to Coates. Now where had I ditched the highway?

My finger followed the red lines off of the map, so I flipped it over, realizing that my calculations had been unnecessary. Jim had already marked the location of his home with a red dot. I was approximately twenty miles away from Coates, and thirty miles away from Perdido Beach.

There weren't many places in a walking distance marked on the map, except for a mine about a few miles away from here. I guessed that that was where Jim worked during the day, and probably where his car was, if he owned one. If I could somehow get to Jim's car, and find a way to start it, I would be able to leave this lonely desert and head somewhere else, maybe see how far the barrier went. Who knew, there might be an exit somewhere.

So I figured that that was my plan, for now.

To go to the mine and get out of here.

To leave everything behind.

There was no time to think about the flaws. I had no idea how long I had before I was put in danger again.

I grabbed a plastic bag from the ground and stuffed it with a few cans of beans, pudding, and fruit. Then I found a few empty jars, walked back out to the faucet, rinsing them out and filling them with water.

I managed to find a hammer in the closet, which would serve as my single weapon of defense. If I swung it hard enough, it could do some serious damage.

I searched for a source of light, flashlights, matches, candles, but came up empty handed. I shrugged, figuring that I'd reach the mine before nighttime, anyways.

There. I was all set. It was time to start hiking again. Back into the scorching heat.

But this time I was prepared.

----------

Oh, no.

I hadn't expected this. I hadn't expected this at all.

I had made it to the mine in less then an hour, barely using up any of my supplies. I had found Jim's car, a new looking red truck, parked out front.

But I had also discovered that I wasn't alone. I hadn't been the only one who had thought that coming to the mine would be a good idea.

I was now crouched behind Jim's truck, trying not to catch the attention of two vicious coyotes, patrolling the entrance of the mine. What the heck were they doing here? If I could only find some way to actually get into the truck, and lock the doors. Then I'd be safe, and I could get away from this extremely strange situation. Since when did coyotes stand guard?

I snickered to myself. It's not like anything normal was happening. Since when did I clutch hammers in my hands, and plan on stealing a truck?

I was suddenly aware of a low rumbling behind me, accompanied by a menacing snarl.

Oh, lovely.

I slowly turned my head, wincing in fear. I knew what was behind me, but I didn't want it to be real.

"Nice coyote." I whispered, my voice shaking. I held up the hammer in my trembling hands, still on my knees. The two coyotes growled, their hackles raised in anger. They crouched forward, ready to spring. "Oh, crap."

I covered my head and leaped up, backing away from the predators. Maybe if I moved slowly enough, they would ignore me. The coyotes inched forward, drool gathering on their furry muzzles. They were scrawny things, but surprisingly larger then dogs. It was obvious that they were hungry.

What was I supposed to do? I didn't want to fight them. But what choice did I have?

"Stay away!" I shouted, swinging the hammer in the air. "Go away! Shoo!"

The coyotes jumped back at mu sudden movement, and I could practically see their beady eyes narrow. Their skin pulled back over their teeth, resulting in another horrible snarl. I could tell they weren't going anywhere.

Both coyotes glanced at each other for a brief second, and the first coyote nodded.

I gasped as the second coyote leaped towards me, it's jaw snapping at my neck. I felt a sharp, fiery pain in my right arm, followed by a sickening crack. The hammer dropped to the ground with a thud, signaling the first coyote to attack as well. Their weight knocked me down, and soon both animals were on top of me, yanking and biting at my flesh.

I cried out in pain as a set of teeth sunk into my right leg, sending a strong jolt of fire through my nerves. I felt a crushing weight on my torso, and a warm liquid spill over my eyes, blinding me with red. I heard the tear of my clothing, and an endless amount on growling.

I started to lose feeling in my agonized limbs, which were probably broken in a number of places, mangled beyond belief. The pain was everywhere, making me dizzy and weak.

Soon I couldn't struggle any longer. I was out of energy. I was going to die.

Darkness was crowding my vision, and I knew that I was on the verge of unconciousness. My whole body burned, a bloody mess, electrifying sparks ripping through my battered, raw skin. Even if the coyotes did ley up before I was finished, I wouldn't be able to get help soon enough. I was as good as dead.

I tried to ignore the loud whirring in my ears, but it was useless. I heard a frightened yelp, and suddenly I wasn't weighed down anymore. Great.

They were gone, and I would soon be as well.

I tried to shout out, but no sound came from my torn mouth. My head throbbed, feeling like it was on fire, jagged spikes pulsing through my veins.

I struggled to stay awake, but I was getting pulled deeper and deeper into blackness. There was nothing I could do except lie there, writhing in torment, waiting to die.

But I familiar voice jolted my senses, lurching me out of misery for an instant.

I forced my eyes open, despise the blood, and the sharp blades that enhanced the sheer agony. I couldn't see anything, but I could still hear.

"Gretchen!" I felt someone next to me crying my name, their voice filled with pure horror and shock. It was raw, tortured, as if what they were seeing was deathly, unbearably painful.

Drake.

I was too hurt to register any form of surprise. I just wanted to tell him that I could hear him, but nothing came. I tried to shake my head, but I couldn't move. I felt hands on my shoulders, shaking me back and forth. Something squeezing my palm. Ragged breaths on my forehead.

"Help her!" Drake demanded, desperate, tone choked. "You have to help her!"

The whirring in my head was growing louder, the blackness getting deeper, flames burning hotter. His words didn't make much sense to me anymore, the white hot pain too much to handle, searing through my mind.

I barely felt the palm pressed against my forehead, and another palm on my chest.

"She'll be okay, right?" Drake pleaded, his voice shrill with fear. I had never heard him their scared before.

"Yes." I heard a female voice, more annoyed then terrified. I could tell who it was. "She'll be fine."

Yeah, right. What was she going to do, heal me?

Oh.

If I could have moved my hands, I would have slapped my forehead. Of course. The girl was the one who could heal. The one that we had captured and brought to Coates. But what was she doing with Drake out in the desert?

That silent question made me realize that I was able to think straight again. Here powers must be working.

The pain slowly began to dull, her hands moving up and down my broken body. Drake had put some kind of cloth on my head, moping up all of the blood covering my eyes. There was a new weight was on me, this one of exhaustion. I had only slept a few hours last night, only half of what I normally rested. Besides, I had been hiking almost all day.

I started to feel a lot better, my burning pain reducing to a dull ache. It was hard to believe everything that had just happened, all passing so quickly.

"Are you okay?" Drake whispered shakily, unsure of whether I could hear him. He rubbed my shoulder, making me shiver at his familiar, gentle touch.

"Y-yeah." I whispered hoarsely, lips dry, my eyes finally adjusting to the bright daylight. "W-what... happened?"

Drake laughed, a dark, menacing sound. He drew in a shuddering breath, making me realize how much tension he had been holding, why his hands were curled into tight fists, knuckles white. "I'll explain later. But right now, we're going to head back to Coates." He paused, nervously scanning my gruesome injuries, and brushed a lock of bloodied hair out of my eyes. "I mean, if you're up for it."

"No." I tried to sit up, struggling against the fiery pain in my arm, but was still unable to move. "What are you doing here? I thought you were... hurt." I paused at the end of my sentance, realizing that I hadn't actually seen Drake's appearance yet, because he had been towering over me this whole time.

But as I turned my head around to get a better glance, I gasped. "Y-you're... arm!"

Drake's arm was now a blood red whip, curled around his body like a vicious snake, ready to strike. It appeared stretchy, like taffy, and I couldn't help my jaw from falling open in pure horror.

"Isn't it great?" Drake laughed again, slightly more bold, running it's scaly tip lightly over my cheek. "That's why I was out here. I needed to fix my arm."

Then Drake's expression grew serious, as if remembering something important, and he frowned. "But what are you doing out here? The last time I saw you, you were next to me in the academy's field. When I woke up after I had passed out, I couldn't find you anywhere. I searched Coates and Perdido Beach, figuring that you had gone back with Sam and the others. After I had looked and found nothing, I left with her." Drake jerked his thumb at the healer girl. "To get my arm back."

I didn't know what to say. My mouth felt dry, as if my words were at the tip of my tongue, my eyes turning away in shame. His explanation had left me feeling like I'd been punched in the stomach, a painful reminder of what a coward I was, leaving him to die. I had left Coates, despise the fact that Drake was still there, and had run off into the desert.

"Gretchen." Drake's expression was still stern, but contained a lighter edge, a gentle warmth covering his features. He must have noticed the tears starting to well up in my eyes, betraying my emotions, a pitiful thing to do. Crying was a sign of weakness. "What are you doing here?"

"I-I ran away." I admitted, choking out the words, feeling extremely guilty. I bit down on my lip, hard, preventing the tears from spilling over. "I... couldn't take it anymore. I knew that as soon as I saw you again, there would be no way that you'd take me back. I came here, searching for somewhere to go."

"Why wouldn't I take you back?" Drake asked, sheer horror filling his tone, astounded by my assumption. "I nearly had a heart attack when I came out of the mine and saw you lying on the ground, practically dead. I mean, of all the crazy things that have happened, that was the craziest yet."

"I-I'm sorry, Drake." I apologized, frowning, trying to block out his worried expression. Concentrating on the girl, I noticed that she was still pressing one of her palms against my leg, the other against my arm. I wiggled my fingers. "I just... I didn't think you'd forgive me, after I left."

Drake's expression was hard. "I would never do that." He shook his head, sandy colored hair rustling through the air, a wind blown mess. "Never. But I still don't understand. Why don't you want to return to Coates?"

"I just can't go back there." I mumbled, the pain almost completely faded away. "I don't think... I just can't. And besides... Caine will be really mad."

"Caine will be ticked off." Drake agreed, nodding sympathetically. "I didn't exactly ask for his permission to head out here, either. But we have to go back. The big fight is soon, and Caine will need all the help he can get."

"He just wants you there." I rolled my eyes, indignant. "I'm nothing to him. The only reason I'm still receiving orders is because I'm with you."

"That's not true." Drake shook his head, frowning at my assumption. "Caine wants anyone who will help him defeat Sam Temple. Besides," Drake winked at me, a smirk on his face. "We're a packaged deal."

I thought about that. If I left, would Drake really come with me? Would it even make a difference?

"There." The healer girl muttered, brushing the grimy dust off of her blue jeans. "I'm getting better at this."

"Thanks." I grinned, slowly standing up. My body was still sore, cuts and bruises everywhere, but intact.

Deciding that I didn't really have much of a choice, I gave in to Drake's request. "Fine." I grumbled, letting him wrap his still human arm around my waist. "Let's go back to the Fearless Leader."

"Good choice." Drake grinned his shark like grin. "It would suck if you weren't there for Sam's defeat."

"Or Caine's." I whispered, too quietly for anyone to hear. "The odds are pretty even."

The three of us moved to the side of the mine, where a dark colored car was parked. I smiled, extremely glad that we weren't going back to Coates on foot, and sat in the front passenger's seat. right next to Drake, who was at the wheel. The healer girl sat down in the back seat, staring at nothing in particular, after getting shoved in by Drake.

Drake raised his eyebrows at me, amused by my smug expression. "What are you so happy about?"

I laughed as he started up the car's engine. "You'd be too if you had walked all the way here."


	3. Part 3

We all arrived at Coates a few hours later, drowsy from lack of sleep. As I stepped out of the car, I noticed that we weren't alone.

"What are they doing here?" I jumped into Drake's arms, terrified of the coyotes surrounding our vehicle. "I thought that you'd scared them off!"

"No." Drake waved the coyotes away, making them back up a few steps. "They follow me."

"Why?" I couldn't get over the fact that Drake was so calm around them. "I'm going to have to explain everything to Caine, so there's no point in repeating myself." Drake shrugged, locking the car. "Come on, we have a reunion to start." My eyes flickered nervously to their pointy teeth, and I shuddered, remembering my previous encounter.

But I forced my legs to move, and we walked up the front steps, shoving the door open. The corridor was tidier then it had been the last time I'd been there, so Caine must have cleaned up.

I heard a crash from outside, and then Drake shouted, "Gretchen, come on! They're out back."

I raced to his side, the coyotes swarming the part of the school in front of us. I could see that all of the imprisoned kids were gone, probably having teamed up with Sam and his friends. Lana was behind us, moving like a zombie, her feet dragging on the ground. She looked shocked, but then again, why wouldn't she be?

Caine and Diana came into focus, oblivious to us, bickering about something. But soon they realized the extra company, and Caine whirled around, his palms outstretched, ready to fight.

"No, stop!" Drake yelled, his face lit up with excitement. "They're friends."

I watched as their expressions went from fear to pure shock as they saw Drake, his whip arm uncomfortably curled around my waist. It was like a metal chain. Unbreakable.

Drake sauntered towards them, his features full of mal-intent.

"Drake!" Caine's eyes were wide with complete disbelief. "We though you were dead!"

"Nope." Drake chuckled, satisfied with Caine's reaction. "I'm back. And better then ever."

"No way," Diana cursed, "It's not possible."

Drake unwrapped his whip arm from around my waist, swirling it above his head. Then, in one swift movement, it flew forwards, so quickly it was barely visible. I heard a loud crack, like a gunshot, and Diana cried out in pain. Blood trickled through a cut in her blouse and down her shoulder.

"Oh, it's possible." Drake licked his lips.

"Drake." Caine grinned; paying no attention to Diana's wound. "Welcome back." He shook Drake's hand, and then extended it towards me. "You too, Gretchen."

"Thanks." I shook his hand, smiling.

"We brought some help, by the way." Drake pointed at the hungry looking coyotes, who were now gathered around us in a loose circle. "So, when are we gonna take down Sam Temple?"

-

Caine had explained the plan over and over, making sure that he hadn't missed anything. It was all set. Tomorrow evening would be the time of chaos. That's when Sam and Caine were supposed to blink out, as well as the time when they would fight to the death. I was horrified by how cruel teenagers could be, planning on killing innocent bystanders, little kids, and many others, but kept quiet.

Had it really come to this? Authority disappears, and it was automatically okay to use guns and other weapons. And I was just as much a part of it as anyone else, going along with something that I didn't think was right. Nobody should die tomorrow.

I refreshed Caine's orders I my mind. We would all leave Coates at the same time, in three separate groups. The Decoys, the Guarded, and the Starters.

Panda and Frederico would be part of the Decoys, taking over the school, and acting as if Caine was inside. They were to trick Sam into thinking that they were guarding Caine, so that he would be busy when the coyotes, Drake, and I took over the daycare. We were part of the Starters, holding everyone hostage, sort of like a bribe.

Caine, Diana, and many other kids from Coates were part of the Guarded, who would take up residence in a house behind the school, waiting for Panda and Frederico to brief them on the current situation. An annoying kid named Bug would be the messenger, since he had the power to blend into his surroundings, like a chameleon. Bug would talk to Sam, telling him that Caine wanted every kid gathered in the plaza, and every freak gathered in the church, so that he and Sam could have a one on one battle. Just the two of them. No one else there to interfere.

But Caine had another plan up his sleeve. He didn't plan on letting anyone else live after Sam was gone.

This was so messed up.

We were all supposed to go over the plan until we were sure of everything that Caine wanted us to do. Then we were free of orders until tomorrow afternoon, when the preparations would begin. Personally, I just wanted to go back to Drake's apartment and sleep, but that wasn't an option.

It was necessary to remain at Coates. I hadn't really ever been to the school since the FAYZ, living in Perdido Beach as I did. But now that I was spending more and more time here, I noticed that it was a lot larger then it appeared to be. An endless maze of hallways, dormitories, classrooms, and staircases. Thankfully, Drake had shown me around, proudly pointing out the best spots for lounging around and avoiding adults. He was with Caine right now, still plotting about the best way to take down Sam.

I had gotten tired of that talk after a while, and told them that I was going to take a walk, planning on clearing my head and straightening out my thoughts. As much as I liked Drake, I wasn't able to spend hours and hours on end talking about weapons like he could.

I opened the back doors, letting the sunlight spill into the empty corridor, making it seem a lot friendlier. There was a thick forest surrounding the school, shielding it from the highway. It looked nice here, interesting. But I'd probably get bored of the academy after a while, having to sleep in the same place all the time. I wondered if the Coates kids had been allowed off campus, or if they had always been refined to the same spot of land.

I spotted a tall rock in the sunlight, warm and serene, planted on the ground. Moving over towards it, I placed myself on top and looked out at the horizon. I enjoyed looking at the clouds as they drifted throughout the blue sky. I gazed at the trees, watching as their branches swayed in the warm autumn's wind, their leaves fluttering around. Swirls of green, red, orange, yellow, pink, and brown. I rested my head on my knees, closing my eyes in contentment.

If only everyone could work together to get through the FAYZ. Use their strengths to take hold on what we had, and survive.

Instead, some of us were taking advantage of other's weaknesses. Causing destruction, not harmony.

But what was I saying? I was no peacemaker. If I had wanted to, I could have ditched this place by now. I could have been on my way to Perdido Beach, ready to warn Sam and the others about what was on its way. I could run away right now I wanted to, using the forest as my getaway, and leave Caine and all his cruelty behind.

Yet I wasn't going anywhere. I sat here, thinking about everyone getting along, when the truth was, I was choosing not to side with the good guys. I was siding with the bad guys.

Because I wanted to.

Maybe it would be taking a chance if I left, a risk some wouldn't be willing to take, but I wasn't being forced to stay here. I was choosing not to leave. So that didn't make me any better then Drake and Diana, or even Caine. I was just as bad as all of them.

Not as devious, but just as wrong.

And much more scared.

Scared of the power, and what would happen tomorrow.

Scared of blinking out.

Scared of the FAYZ.

"Hey, Gretchen!" My eyes flew open as I heard Drake's voice behind me. I turned around, wiping the sad expression off of my face and replacing it with a happy one.

"Hey, Drake." He had his whip arm curled around his waist, as if it had a mind of its own. Surprisingly, it didn't really bother me that Drake no longer had a normal arm. "So, is everything all set with Caine?"

Drake nodded, moving over to sit down next to me. "Yeah." I watched nervously as his whip arm snaked its way behind my back and tightened around my waist, just like before. Drake leaned over, and kissed my cheek. I shivered. "Tomorrow is going to be exciting."

"You got that right." I told him sarcastically. "But I'm not sure if that's really the right word. Try… dangerous." I had a list of other words lined up in my mind, but I didn't bother to say them out loud. Horrible, destructive, incredible, terrifying, and many more.

"For them." Drake smirked, laughing in a mean way. "What with me having my new arm and everything."

Well, he was modest.

"You never did explain that to me." I frowned, playfully raising my eyebrows. "How did you get… that?"

Drake sighed, shaking his head. "After I lost my arm, I left with that healer freak, planning on getting far enough away so that no one would suspect anything, and making her fix my arm." He released me and cracked the whip in the air, creating an incredibly loud noise. "But the coyotes ambushed us in the desert, and took us to the mine, where we met with their leader, the Darkness. It told the head coyote that I would teach them how to kill humans, and then it gave me this." Drake cracked his whip again, grinning.

"I don't understand." I pulled my eyebrows together, confused. "The Darkness just… gave you the whip arm?"

"It uses people to communicate." Drake explained. "It was talking to us through the healer freak. So then she, it, whatever, held my arm and fixed it."

"I would hardly call that fixed." I muttered, eyeing the blood red whip arm carefully as Drake wrapped it back around my waist. It felt as though it were constructed by stone. "Did it hurt?"

"Nope." He assured me. "It's so awesome, isn't it?"

"Yeah…" I slowly reached out to touch it, and felt the scaly surface beneath my fingers. "It's really something."

"I'm glad you think so." Drake tilted his head sideways, pressing his soft lips against mine.

"Mmm." I shut my eyes and placed my arms around his neck. I felt his whip arm curl tighter, and his other hand on my shoulders, pulling me closer.

We stayed this way for a while, finally stopping when we heard light footsteps behind us. I looked up to see Diana, her nose wrinkled in disgust.

"Get a room, will you?" She rolled her eyes, placing her hands on her hips.

"Oh, you're just jealous because Caine hasn't kissed you yet." Drake's expression was smug. "Anyways, what do you want?"

"Caine has a few more suggestions that he wants to go over with you." Diana replied, ignoring his comment. "He's in the dining hall."

"Fine." Drake got up from the rock, still holding onto me. I could feel his warm breath against my neck, sweet and comforting. "Come on, Gretchen."

"Yeah." I stood up, stretching my legs. How long had I been sitting here? Half an hour? An hour? We walked back into the school, and entered the dining hall, meeting up with Caine.

-

I woke up, forgetting where I was for a moment, then remembering the dark, gloomy hallway of Coates where I had so willingly fallen asleep. I had had another dream this time, quite similar to the first one, but different. This time I had been searching for Caine, my palms outstretched and ready. I had been calling him a traitor, and he had been the one pleading for mercy.

Drake was at my side, unconscious on the ground. It was as if my whole dream had been reversed, putting me in Caine's place, and vice versa. A strange new way of seeing things. But this dream hadn't been anything close to reality. He would never be scared of me. I would never be more powerful then Caine. Plain and simple. But what if… I was stronger then him? If I could control him?

I was allowed to fantasize, wasn't I?

I'd probably try to help Drake take him down, but let Drake finish him off. I wouldn't want my boyfriend thinking that I was a threat. Then with Caine gone, it would be bye bye Sam. Without Caine in the way, we would be able to get rid of Sam pretty easily, and rule the FAYZ. Make all the laws.

Then what?

I didn't want people to dislike me, to want me dead like our current "leader." Even though it was too late for that now, I didn't want to make it any worse then it already was.

So I guessed that I should just leave it. Yet it have would be nice to know just how powerful I really was…

Just in case I had to fend for myself. If Drake wasn't there anymore.

That had happened before, and I had nearly died. Except for the fact that Drake had saved me.

But all that might have not even have happened if I hadn't gotten associated with him in the first place.

I was jolted out of my dreams by soft footsteps coming towards me, echoing off of the bare, concrete floors. The movement was slow, and something told me that whoever it was, they were counting on everyone being asleep. I shut my eyes, trying to look as inconspicuous as possible.

Now that the footsteps were closer, I noticed that there were two people, slowly creeping only a few feet away. Probably heading for the front door.

I mentally made a list of who they could be. I was with Drake. Caine wouldn't bother sneaking around. And I doubted that any of the bullies were stealthy enough to move around in the hallways, making almost no noise at all. Then who was left? There was Diana, Computer Jack, and a few others. But what were they doing traveling the school in the middle of the night?

As soon as the sound of the footsteps disappeared completely, I opened my eyes and stood up, gently removing Drake's arm from around my waist. I had a vague idea of who they might be, and it wouldn't be the best plan to have Drake barge in and attack before I could see what was going on.

I crept through the deserted hallways, until I reached the front door of the school. Carefully stepping out into the cool night air, I crouched behind a set of bushes, hearing two voices whispering a few meters away.

"Go!" The first person spat, just a shadow despite the moonlight. "Take that car, and don't stop driving until you reach Perdido Beach!"

I froze. I knew that voice.

The second person stuttered. "N-no! C-Caine'll kill me! O-Or worse! He'll l-let Drake do what he w-wants with me!"

"Listen, Jack," Diana hissed, her tone dripping with poison. Her figure moved forward a few steps, walking towards the vehicle. "You're gonna do what I tell you to. Remember our little deal? Refuse, and I'll tell everyone you're secret."

"I-I don't care," Jack shook his head. "N-No way. Why do you want to w-warn Sam, anyways?"

"That's not your concern." Diana replied. She gave a dramatic sigh. "Fine. If you don't leave now, I'll scream. When Caine comes, I'll tell him I caught you trying to escape. Who do you think he'll believe?"

I could almost see the smug grin on her face.

All was silent. I briefly wondered if they had heard me, but a few moments later, I heard a car's engine start up, it's tires squeaking on the dusty road. Soon if faded into the distance, growing softer and softer.

I held my breath as Diana passed a foot away from where I was hiding, terrified of what she'd do if she caught me. Who knew what devious plan she's come up with, blaming me for Jack's "escape"?

Once her footsteps had completely faded, just like before, I crept back into the school. My mind was spinning. Trying not to think, I just focused on the big fight tomorrow, and what would happen. I wouldn't give in to the ideas that were pulling at my emotions, making me question what I had just witnessed. Who knew why Diana had done what she did? Could it be possible that she was actually on Sam's side, just sticking by Caine's side for her own safety? It was all too confusing.

And, maybe, I didn't want to admit to myself how her betrayal… had given me hope.

I gave a wry smile, and let myself drift back to sleep, pressing myself against Drake's side.

Drake held my hand in the backseat as we drove to Perdido Beach, a few miles behind the other six cars that were heading for the town. We were to be inconspicuous, using the others as a distraction, and sneak up unexpectedly on the daycare.

I still couldn't believe that Caine had ordered us to take the little kids hostage. But, now that I thought about it, he did tend to constantly surprise us. Except… why the little kids? How could we threaten poor, defenseless children? I was so horrified by the idea that I shuddered.

I needed to think about something else, noticing that I was just getting more and more upset.

Staring out of the backseat window, I watched the glowing shadow caused by the sunset. Even though it was almost the same as any normal one, I noticed that the horizon line was different. Lower down. I wondered if it meant anything.

But I wasn't the sort of person who could analyze those things, like Astrid. She seemed to know everything about how the universe worked and the laws of physics.

Personally, I had no idea about what had caused the FAYZ.

"Does the weather here ever change?" I whispered to Drake, who had been toiling around with his whip arm until now. He couldn't get enough of how fast it could swish through the air. "I mean, it hasn't ever rained here since the beginning of the FAYZ, has it?"

He looked puzzled by my sudden question. "Um, no. I guess not." He read my expression carefully. "Why?"

:I was just thinking about some of the changes that have happened since the start of the FAYZ." I clarified, gazing out the window again. "And if it would be possible to have rain while the barrier was still here."

"Oh." Drake shrugged, bored by my pondering. "We haven't been in the FAYZ long enough to actually know if there's been a significant lack of rain, thunder, lightening, snow…" He trailed off, cracking his whip arm again.

One of his words caught my attention.

Lightning.

As if I didn't have enough to worry about. I was heading into a fight that was going to be horrific, and I wasn't even sure what I was going to do.

I couldn't use my powers, not in front of Drake, or anyone else. Especially not in front of Drake. It was bad enough that Sam, Astrid, Little Pete, Quinn, Edilio, and Lana all knew about what I was capable of, but I didn't need for anyone else to find out.

I was grateful that Lana didn't talk that much, because Drake didn't seem to have a clue about what I was hiding from him.

But why was I thinking about using my powers?

I didn't even know how to control them yet. Or of I ever would.

"We're here." Chunk announced, cutting off the engine.


End file.
